Zanzibar's beaches, compared: north, east or south

Zanzibar's beaches are all white sand and turquoise water, and they are not all the same. The difference is the tide, the wind and the reef, and it decides whether you swim at four in the afternoon or walk half a kilometre to find the sea.

The north: Nungwi and Kendwa

The tip of the island. The reef is close to shore here, so the water stays deep enough to swim at every tide, and the beach faces west for the sunset. Nungwi is a village with restaurants, dive centres and a fishing fleet; Kendwa next door is quieter with the same sea. For a first visit, or after a safari when nobody wants to think, this is where we send people.

The east: Paje, Bwejuu, Jambiani and up to Matemwe

The widest sand on the island and the longest views, with the reef a kilometre out. Twice a day the tide goes out to it and the beach becomes a shallow lagoon you can walk across, then comes back. Between June and September the wind makes Paje one of the best kitesurfing beaches in Africa. Matemwe in the north east faces Mnemba atoll, the best snorkelling and diving on the island.

The south: Kizimkazi

Quiet, with a few small lodges, the dolphin boats in the morning and the Jozani forest twenty minutes away. Not a beach for a week, but a good end to a Stone Town day.

The west: Mangapwani and the resorts north of town

Coves and low cliffs half an hour from Stone Town, with the big family resorts. The transfer from the airport is short, which matters with children, and the water is calm.

Our rule

Swimmers north, kiters and divers east, families west, and anyone who wants to see nobody south. Tell us which you are and we choose the hotel accordingly.